Hounded – The Iron Druid Chronicles, Book 1

FTC Disclosure: Brilliance Audio has graciously provided me with an audio version of this book for reviewing purposes. Aside from this courtesy copy, I have received no payment, services or other reimbursement in exchange for this review.

Summary:

He may look 21 but he is 21 centuries old, and for the last 2,000 of those years, Atticus O’Sullivan has been hounded by Aenghus Og, a fae Celtic love god from whom he stole a magical sword.Atticus, the last of the Druids, has been hiding out rather successfully in Tempe, Arizona, running a New Age store.The only ones who know his true identity are his faithful wolfhound, Oberon (with whom he can communicate mentally), his werewolf and vampire lawyers, and Morrigan, the fae queen of destruction.Unfortunately, as the internet makes the world smaller, the Tuatha Dé Danann (the fae) discover the true identity of Atticus O’Sullivan and are again coming for the sword.Tired of running, Atticus has decided to make Arizona his last stand.

The Druids: they’re about more than just trees.

This audiobook was not what I expected.I expected any tale about a druid to be another Lord of the Rings-type, high fantasy, Renaissance Faire-like, tight-wearing tale. Hounded is not. This audiobook is very modern, very urban fantasy, incorporating the real world, the real police, including jurisdictional and media concerns.Tempe versus Phoenix cops?Check. Can’t go to the hospital because of the paperwork that requires? Check.I really appreciate that real world considerations.It makes the cynic in me happy.

Also, having first read the official blurb on the book, I was worried about how many different supernatural creatures are in the story: werewolves and vampires and witches and fae and Norse gods and miscellaneous demons, oh my! Usually, with that many different paranormal types, the reader starts to trip up over the storyline.Here, it worked because the focus remained on the fae.Atticus is the only Druid, and his power is witchy, making it easier on the reader.With the lawyers – the vampire and werewolves – these characters are ancillary enough not to complicate things.The only trip-up I found was with Granuaile MacTiernan. When we find out what’s up with her, I did roll my eyes.It was just a tad too much for me.

Overall, Hounded was a joy to listen to.The writing itself is very skillful and conversational.The tension is there continually, and it builds easily from scene to scene, at times, honestly shocking.I enjoyed learning with Atticus which characters he could trust and which he should fear.There are some very sexy moments, although the writing is PG-13.Also, there’s a ton of humor in this audiobook, especially from the wolfhound, who’s obsessed with Genghas Khan and French poodles, and Atticus's old neighbor, who hates the British and drinks like a fish.

On narration:

Luke Daniels does not sound like a 21-year-old, but he sure does sound like he knows his Celtic.His pronunciation of old Irish names is spot-on.When he narrates Oberon, he sounds like a big, loveable, fuzzy, panting hound. When he reads female voices, he doesn’t pitch his voice up high, but he makes his tone softer and breathier, which works as most females in Hounded are sexual characters.His accents, specifically Polish and Hindi, were passable.Overall, the reading went well with the story.

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I am an alter ego and pen name of a 29-year-old attorney who writes and reads - or rather, listens to - urban fantasy and paranormal mystery novels.
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5 out of 5 - Incredible. So well written it hurts. You should buy this audiobook, listen to it, then listen to it again.

4 out of 5 - Very, very good. It is so good, it'll sit in the back of your mind and make you long for the next in the series.

3 out of 5 - Very good. Entertaining, satisfying and worth a good long listen.

2 out of 5 - Good. Buy it, listen to it, and move on. It's exactly as advertised, and worth the time.

1 out of 5 - Disappointing. You're not going to see this rating on my Blog. If I find an audiobook a 1, I won't review it.

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If you are an author, promoter or publisher who would like an audiobook reviewed here, please email me at Dkurlind [at] gmail dot com to work out a time-frame.

Please keep in mind that only audiobooks are reviewed. Also, please keep in mind the genres addressed in this Blog are limited to urban fantasy, urban horror, and paranormal romance, thrillers or mysteries.Related genres are welcome, including young adult, high fantasy, science fiction, high horror, mysteries, thrillers, romance, and suspense. I will not review non-fiction or erotica.

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Q. Why audiobooks? Are you blind?

If I lose a contact, sure, I'm blind as a bat.In all seriousness, I review audiobooks as opposed to the written book because I don’t own a single one of the many Urban Fantasy/Paranormal Thriller books I review.Instead, I’ve purchased their audio recordings.Shocking just how much money I spent on audible.com over the span of the last year. Why audiobooks?Because my alter ego – the one who has a Social Security number and a driver’s license – is an attorney who spends most of her time reading off a computer or inspecting tons of documents.Also, [shameless plug alert] I’m currently working on my own urban fantasy novel, The Lost Art of Hiding Among the Dead [/spa]. This means I spend 90% of my waking life using my eyes reading.While I love paranormal mysteries, if I spend any more of my time on reading, I might lose my mind as well as my vision. Audiobooks allow me to go through one to three books a week, but while moving, driving, running, or cleaning, instead of crouching over a manuscript.

Q.All your reviews are positive.Do you love every book you listen to?

Hardly! There are tons of books I’ve downloaded that were a waste of time, money and effort and I can think of a few, off the top of my head, that have inspired me to: (a) roll my eyes every 15 minutes; (b) write hate mail (but not send); (c) re-listen to them again spurred by an irrational belief that there must be a plot in there somewhere, I just know it; (d) give up after less than an hour; and (e) demanded my money back. However, in this Review, I choose to operate under the old adage of “if you haven’t anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all.”Truth is [shameless plug alert], as someone working on a novel myself, The Lost Art of Hiding Among the Dead [/spa], I understand how difficult and time-consuming it is to write a novel.Then consider how difficult it is to find a literary agent, an editor and a publisher, and then become well-read enough to have the novel converted into an audiobook.Even the worst book is a product of blood, sweat, and tears.Fortunately, there are enough wonderful books out there that deserve praise. However, if you're that curious and would like to see my list of awful audiobooks to not download under any cost, email me, and I’ll share, but I refuse to pooh-pooh someone’s life’s work publicly on this blog for the sake of airing out my own frustrations.